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OT: Dog pain med

MADHAT1

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I have a 9 year old small dog (20lbs) that has developed a limp and I figure it's probably arthritis .because limp comes and goes and dog not doing it all the time
Seeing her vet next Thursday but wondering if any here know of safe OTC pain medicine for dogs.
Aspirin is supposed to be avoided , I was told, and hoping some of you can recommend non aspirin pain med.
Heard about Rimadyl or Metacam being aspirin replacement for dogs..
Anyone know anything (good/bad about either of them) or recommend something else to use until dog see vet
 
Our dog Savannah had a similar problem would limp at times then would be fine. Turns out it wasn't arthritis like we thought. It was Lyme's disease, however for dogs there is a treatment. They just never continued the research for humans because there's not much of a market for it.

If it is arthritis our dog Rawley is on Deramaxx and Glucosamine. He's older at 9 yrs. and 110 lbs. He gets blood work every 6 months for the Deramaxx the other is over the counter. For two years now no problems at all and it definitely put the spring back in his step.

Doesn't help till you get to the vet, just wanted to give you some similar experiences we went through.
 
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Our dog Savannah had a similar problem would limp at times then would be fine. Turns out it wasn't arthritis like we thought. It was Lyme's disease, however for dogs there is a treatment. They just never continued the research for humans because there's not much of a market for it.

If it is arthritis our dog Rawley is on Deramaxx and Glucosamine. He's older at 9 yrs. and 110 lbs. He gets blood work every 6 months for the Deramaxx the other is over the counter. For two years now no problems at all and it definitely put the spring back in his step.

Doesn't help till you get to the vet, just wanted to give you some similar experiences we went through.
thanks, you gave me something for me to ask vet with Savannah's Lyme's disease
I have ave LaLa's blood work checked with the health maintenance plan I have for her and my other small dog Butch
but never know if something will pop up between twice yearly check-ups.
Glucosamine. my dog gets in the joint supplement I give her 2x day
will ask about Deramaxx as a treatment for pain that causes limp
Thanks again, you helped me know what to ask
 
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My dog accidentally ate an Advil and got violently ill 6hours later. I had to take her to the animal hospital.
Please ask a vet before giving the dog anything. Maybe vet can get you in if someone cancels?
 
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We've got a 14 year-old....picture is my avatar...Gabapentin is what he gets for his arthritis and an anti-inflamatory Galliprant. Both prescription though. Aspercreme is an over-the-counter creme we've tried, but our guy would always lick at it, so we had to stop.
Sadly, we may be dealing with dementia in our guy. We seem to be on the verge of a horrible, heart-breaking decision. We'll see what the vet says on Monday.
 
thanks, you gave me something for me to ask vet with Savannah's Lyme's disease
I have ave LaLa's blood work checked with the health maintenance plan I have for her and my other small dog Butch
but never know if something will pop up between twice yearly check-ups.
Glucosamine. my dog gets in the joint supplement I give her 2x day
will ask about Deramaxx as a treatment for pain that causes limp
Thanks again, you helped me know what to ask
OK got the actual 411 from my wife, I was mistaken about the Lyme's disease for Savannah and misremembered. However, it was a tick borne bacterial disease just not Lyme's. Also on the Deramaxx it worked so well we cut back on his pills from once a day to once every two days. Our vet told us to monitor him and adjust the medicine(doggy aspirin) as needed.
 
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We've got a 14 year-old....picture is my avatar...Gabapentin is what he gets for his arthritis and an anti-inflamatory Galliprant. Both prescription though. Aspercreme is an over-the-counter creme we've tried, but our guy would always lick at it, so we had to stop.
Sadly, we may be dealing with dementia in our guy. We seem to be on the verge of a horrible, heart-breaking decision. We'll see what the vet says on Monday.
hope for the best, but if it's cat's time to go because quality of life suffering too much, even though saying goodby will hurt, it will be in your cats best interest, but it sounds like you know that already .
 
hope for the best, but if it's cat's time to go because quality of life suffering too much, even though saying goodby will hurt, it will be in your cats best interest, but it sounds like you know that already .
Sorry...it's a dog....14 year old Shih Tzu we've had since he was six weeks old. Best dog ever. No bad habits. Great with people. Every time we had friends take care of him while we were away they wanted to keep him. Every vet and every groomer we've ever had always said he was perfect. If he has a fault it may be that he is too friendly.
I've always maintained that it was because of his upbringing.
 
Sorry I can't help on small dogs. I had a Great Dane and most of her medicine was made for humans. I was given pharmacy scripts from the vet which saved $100++ every month. But every older dog should be given anti inflammation medicine of some kind. Also if you dog stop eating something is very wrong. If your vet can't figure it out see another. It doesn't mean your vet is a quack but you need another opinion.
 
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Sorry...it's a dog....14 year old Shih Tzu we've had since he was six weeks old. Best dog ever. No bad habits. Great with people. Every time we had friends take care of him while we were away they wanted to keep him. Every vet and every groomer we've ever had always said he was perfect. If he has a fault it may be that he is too friendly.
I've always maintained that it was because of his upbringing.
my mistake. saying cat, just say hope everything comes out for the best and your dog sounds like he gets a lot of love.
He's lived a good life .
 
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I have had dogs all my life, mostly labs (of every color).

I have a 3 year old Shih Tzu now, that we got at 12 weeks.
I hate to rank my dogs because I’ve loved every single one of them with all my heart, but dang if my litttle 9 pound Rosie hasn’t taken it to another level! She would be VERY Happy with where I rank her.
 
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I have had dogs all my life, mostly labs (of every color).

I have a 3 year old Shih Tzu now, that we got at 12 weeks.
I hate to rank my dogs because I’ve loved every single one of them with all my heart, but dang if my litttle 9 pound Rosie hasn’t taken it to another level! She is would be VERY Happy with where I rank her.
We have a little Yorkie/Dachshund mix to go with our farm dogs. He’s a character, I think they know their only defense is to act cute. At least that’s what I tell him every time he tries to act tough to the other 90 and 110 lb dogs.
 
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Try Dasuquin with MSM soft chews. Will help with joint pain with dogs and a great daily treat for continued pain relief.
 
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Sorry...it's a dog....14 year old Shih Tzu we've had since he was six weeks old. Best dog ever. No bad habits. Great with people. Every time we had friends take care of him while we were away they wanted to keep him. Every vet and every groomer we've ever had always said he was perfect. If he has a fault it may be that he is too friendly.
I've always maintained that it was because of his upbringing.
Yes, his upbringing and the ganja treats.😀
 
Exactly. Our German Shepherd started to experience back(not hip) problems at about 11 y/o. Keep in mind- he was a highly trained protection dog trained for the Army. At 115 lbs, he could scale a 9 foot fence and run full speed up the steps to a watch tower. - I sort of call him our doggy OL...
We started him with Dasuquin with MSM and you could see it almost work immediately. by the next day, he had a little more jumpt to his step. by the time he was 13, he was diagnosed with 7 lower spine issues and started to drag his rear paws so tramadol and deramaxx had to be added to his meds. Now, fyi to anyone that goes the deramaxx route- works very well and of course a prescription. But if you do, take them off for 1 month out of every 4 and make sure plenty of fluids- they can cause liver damage.
Tramadol- was the absolute best...It will not lead to any organ problems it seems to relieve the pain when nothing else will.
And we used our human pharmacy for his deramaxx and tramadol - good rx was the way to go for discounts. Prior to doing this, I never knew that both were even an option.
Our Vet even offered cold Lazer, which he did every two weeks.
We lost him yesterday but during his last 2.5 years when he may have been in pain and discomfort, he was pain free and very happy.
 
sorry to hear yesrutgers01 dog passed, but thank him for taking the time and trouble to explain how the Dasuquin with MSM worked on his dog
with what has been replied to me here I have good questions to ask my vet to get LaLa treated so her limp might be fixed and leg not hurt her when I/m taking her and my other little troublemaker on their daily walks or have it hurt any other time like it does sometimes without knowing when it will and when she'll be walking OK
I thank all who replied and those who might later.
 
sorry to hear yesrutgers01 dog passed, but thank him for taking the time and trouble to explain how the Dasuquin with MSM worked on his dog
with what has been replied to me here I have good questions to ask my vet to get LaLa treated so her limp might be fixed and leg not hurt her when I/m taking her and my other little troublemaker on their daily walks or have it hurt any other time like it does sometimes without knowing when it will and when she'll be walking OK
I thank all who replied and those who might later.
Thank you very much for your thoughts and best of luck. I love that you care enough and love your dogs to ask what can make them more comfortable.
some laugh but I always say that our community here, really do care for each other and it is a good place to get at least enough advice so that you are not going into things blindly. Please update us on the progress…
 
Thank you very much for your thoughts and best of luck. I love that you care enough and love your dogs to ask what can make them more comfortable.
some laugh but I always say that our community here, really do care for each other and it is a good place to get at least enough advice so that you are not going into things blindly. Please update us on the progress…
I’m sorry to hear the news about your dog crossing the rainbow bridge. They become such a big part of our lives that I’m sure this loss will hurt for some time.
I don’t think it’s fair they only have a short time with us. I want 80+years with my furry little buddy😢
 
I’m sorry to hear the news about your dog crossing the rainbow bridge. They become such a big part of our lives that I’m sure this loss will hurt for some time.
I don’t think it’s fair they only have a short time with us. I want 80+years with my furry little buddy😢
Thank you...he did have a long life. 15 1/2 years. Very loved but the last year was tough. Ended up paralyzed in his rear legs but never in pain and always still happy, playful and eating like a pig. His body just finally gave out to his age and he actually passed peacefully with his head in my wife's lap as she sang to him, I was holding him and his best friend and playmate sitting against him on his bed. We were even able to get him outside on the porch which was his favorite spot. He was hanging on over the last two days and literally, 10 minutes after my wife actually told him it was ok to leave, he did.
 
Exactly. Our German Shepherd started to experience back(not hip) problems at about 11 y/o. Keep in mind- he was a highly trained protection dog trained for the Army. At 115 lbs, he could scale a 9 foot fence and run full speed up the steps to a watch tower. - I sort of call him our doggy OL...
We started him with Dasuquin with MSM and you could see it almost work immediately. by the next day, he had a little more jumpt to his step. by the time he was 13, he was diagnosed with 7 lower spine issues and started to drag his rear paws so tramadol and deramaxx had to be added to his meds. Now, fyi to anyone that goes the deramaxx route- works very well and of course a prescription. But if you do, take them off for 1 month out of every 4 and make sure plenty of fluids- they can cause liver damage.
Tramadol- was the absolute best...It will not lead to any organ problems it seems to relieve the pain when nothing else will.
And we used our human pharmacy for his deramaxx and tramadol - good rx was the way to go for discounts. Prior to doing this, I never knew that both were even an option.
Our Vet even offered cold Lazer, which he did every two weeks.
We lost him yesterday but during his last 2.5 years when he may have been in pain and discomfort, he was pain free and very happy.
Sorry to hear of the loss .
 
We've got a 14 year-old....picture is my avatar...Gabapentin is what he gets for his arthritis and an anti-inflamatory Galliprant. Both prescription though. Aspercreme is an over-the-counter creme we've tried, but our guy would always lick at it, so we had to stop.
Sadly, we may be dealing with dementia in our guy. We seem to be on the verge of a horrible, heart-breaking decision. We'll see what the vet says on Monday.
Always heartbreaking to put down man's best friend. We've done it 3 times, the last was a year ago when our 14 year old golden retriever had to be put down. We used "Laps of Love", the vet came into our house, she was very sweet and we were allowed to let her pass in her very own bed, without the trauma of going into the vet's office.
Told myself, never again, still even now while writing this, I'm tearing up. Best of luck.
 
Thank you...he did have a long life. 15 1/2 years. Very loved but the last year was tough. Ended up paralyzed in his rear legs but never in pain and always still happy, playful and eating like a pig. His body just finally gave out to his age and he actually passed peacefully with his head in my wife's lap as she sang to him, I was holding him and his best friend and playmate sitting against him on his bed. We were even able to get him outside on the porch which was his favorite spot. He was hanging on over the last two days and literally, 10 minutes after my wife actually told him it was ok to leave, he did.
Very comforting to hear how your dog passed. Not a dry eye in your house, I'm sure.
 
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Very comforting to hear how your dog passed. Not a dry eye in your house, I'm sure.
Not a single one. Zeus was very special. He was trained in Holland as a Service/Protection Dog and was supposed to be assigned to the US Army. Interesting enough, while one of the most certified Dogs, he would not stay for over 4 hours without movement and determined not to qualify for service. He would only stay still on command for 3 hours before he would start looking at his commander to release. Thankfully- but his training from birth to 5 y/o was very tough.
As he became a "pet" - you could not get up out of a seat at any time during the day or night without him getting up to follow you. Around the pool, he would circle at all times to make sure everyone was safe and jumped in a few times when he thought someone may be in danger. And he also would try to curl up on your lap, kiss you etc when needed.
We almost lost him to grief when our younger dog died, who was his very best friend. He came back to us when we got a new puppy and he became her older brother.
To see this big strong independent being have to spend a year in complete dependance on us for everything was difficult. But as I said, he stayed with a smile, love, fun, playfulness and without pain. For more than a year, I woke up twice a night to make sure he was clean, comfortable and would flip him from side to side. And he still smiled and wanted his next treat or food.
He only started to fail a couple of days ago and started to refuse to eat or drink. We tried to feed him via a medicine tube. Which worked but we knew he was holding on for us. There are a couple of people on this board who met Zeus, and they know who this gentle giant was.
My wife, she prayed that we would never have to make choice with Zeus and told our Vet a couple of months ago that in her perfect world, Zeus would leave at home, in her lap, with her singing and without pain.
We had just carried him outside on his bed a moment after she told him it was ok to leave. He was laying there peacefully when I felt it. I ran in to get his little sister, we came out and she sat with him, or "on him" my wife singing/crying, head in her lap and I just held him. He took two deep breaths and I felt him stop.
It is painful but may also be one of the perfect, most beautiful and unbelievable moments I will ever experience.
 
Always heartbreaking to put down man's best friend. We've done it 3 times, the last was a year ago when our 14 year old golden retriever had to be put down. We used "Laps of Love", the vet came into our house, she was very sweet and we were allowed to let her pass in her very own bed, without the trauma of going into the vet's office.
Told myself, never again, still even now while writing this, I'm tearing up. Best of luck.
I didn’t know about Laps of Love(this is my first dog) What an amazing service.
G*d willing, I have some time before I make that call, but will keep this in mind.
I’m crying staring at her sleep. lol

Someone turn this thread around!
 
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I didn’t know about Laps of Love(this is my first dog) What an amazing service.
G*d willing, I have some time before I make that call, but will keep this in mind.
I’m crying staring at her sleep. lol

Someone turn this thread around!
Will do- again to the OP- and sorry for my personal diversion…look into laser therapy for the pain.
If it is something that isn’t broken, this works miracles
 
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Our 80 pound pit mix was on anti-inflammatories last year after he threw out his back playing. The vet said he should refrain from going up and down stairs for a few weeks. I informed the vet that we live on the fourth floor of a walk up, and that it was either going to be the dog’s back or mine 😂 He said a few trips up and down the stairs would probably be ok.

The meds did wonders; he was himself again after just a few days.
 
Our 80 pound pit mix was on anti-inflammatories last year after he threw out his back playing. The vet said he should refrain from going up and down stairs for a few weeks. I informed the vet that we live on the fourth floor of a walk up, and that it was either going to be the dog’s back or mine 😂 He said a few trips up and down the stairs would probably be ok.

The meds did wonders; he was himself again after just a few days.
Yeah- we will always have dogs and it seems, large dogs- we only look for ranches now
 
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having your dog pass is hard.
I've had a few that making the decision that their comfort was more important than my feelings was hard and painful , but needed to be done because my pup didn't need to live a life of pain.
Had a dog wife named Zorro that was a stray I was feeding trying to catch him and find if he had a home and just lost.
After a week or so putting food and water for him out in mornings I tried to get close to him holding left over meat but he just ran across the street till I went back in house .
About another week passed feeding him in morning and him being skittish when I tried to get close
a morning came when after putting out food he ate it and when I was going back into the house he ran in like he lived there. (I claim Zorro adopted me and he followed me everywhere)
Took him to vet and found he was chipped contacted chip organization to let owner know. Chip people contacted me and said no reply so I had them put Zorro in my name and he lived with me and wife for around 8 years along with our dog Hoboken who passed at 19 just after Zorro did.
Both were hard decisions that hurt but the dogs well being was the deciding factor knowing their quality of life wasn't good anymore
 
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having your dog pass is hard.
I've had a few that making the decision that their comfort was more important than my feelings was hard and painful , but needed to be done because my pup didn't need to live a life of pain.
Had a dog wife named Zorro that was a stray I was feeding trying to catch him and find if he had a home and just lost.
After a week or so putting food and water for him out in mornings I tried to get close to him holding left over meat but he just ran across the street till I went back in house .
About another week passed feeding him in morning and him being skittish when I tried to get close
a morning came when after putting out food he ate it and when I was going back into the house he ran in like he lived there. (I claim Zorro adopted me and he followed me everywhere)
Took him to vet and found he was chipped contacted chip organization to let owner know. Chip people contacted me and said no reply so I had them put Zorro in my name and he lived with me and wife for around 8 years along with our dog Hoboken who passed at 19 just after Zorro did.
Both were hard decisions that hurt but the dogs well being was the deciding factor knowing their quality of life wasn't good anymore
Wow- 19 years. That is amazing and your story with Zorro is heartwarming. Thank you for being such a loving doggy Dad.
 
Thank you...he did have a long life. 15 1/2 years. Very loved but the last year was tough. Ended up paralyzed in his rear legs but never in pain and always still happy, playful and eating like a pig. His body just finally gave out to his age and he actually passed peacefully with his head in my wife's lap as she sang to him, I was holding him and his best friend and playmate sitting against him on his bed. We were even able to get him outside on the porch which was his favorite spot. He was hanging on over the last two days and literally, 10 minutes after my wife actually told him it was ok to leave, he did.
Just lost my 17 1/2 year old schnoodle 6 weeks ago. My little gal was my best buddy, always at my side with tail wagging. I always thought I would get another when she inevitably passed, but the pain and grief is still so bad that I don't think I can ever go through this again. They do dictate your life when they get that old as said earlier, but I considered it a labor of love and just wish such wonderful companions could live longer lives.
 
Never knew there was so many dog lovers on this site.
Yes R one, you can’t ask for a better dog than that. Nice story thanks for sharing.
Mad, some simple things til you get him in to the vet. Epsom salt baths and “cosequin” they sell it at Costco and chewy has it (on sale now).
I’ve had dogs all my life I’ve had to my share of good byes.
Every dog is a tragedy. Whether it’s a pup that you lose suddenly, or an old timer that you’ve had for 18 years.
 
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Always check with your vet first but for OTC- we used Dasuquin.

Deremaxx and Tramadol were alternated prescription. As someone else stated, if you need to use Deremaxx for a prolonged period, you would want to check their blood every 3 months. For our larger dog, he needed pain meds for his last 2+ years and this is why we alternated as Tramadol does not affect the organs as much as deremaxx can.

Dasuquin is great for some minor pain relief and can be used regularly.
 
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my apologies for starting this help me thread and not getting back with what was the result.
My vet prescribed Rymadyl 25 mg ( 1/2 tab every 12 hours.)
Took one day for her medicine & joint support supplement to stop limping and I stopped giving her the medicine after the 3rd day.
Giving her 1 VETIQ hip and joint support supplement friend recommended to me. and LALA isn't limping at all.
Stuff has 600mg of Gloucosamine ,210mg of MSM with210 mg KRILL and 280mg Fish Oil

Thanks to all
 
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We've got a 14 year-old....picture is my avatar...Gabapentin is what he gets for his arthritis and an anti-inflamatory Galliprant. Both prescription though. Aspercreme is an over-the-counter creme we've tried, but our guy would always lick at it, so we had to stop.
Sadly, we may be dealing with dementia in our guy. We seem to be on the verge of a horrible, heart-breaking decision. We'll see what the vet says on Monday.
Huh? You've never shotgunned your dog?
No seriously. 100mg Gabapentin was what we've used for canine and I've taken 300mg for nerve pain that completely healed s pinched nerve in neck in 3 weeks after months of PT and an injection that didn't last.
 
Thank you...he did have a long life. 15 1/2 years. Very loved but the last year was tough. Ended up paralyzed in his rear legs but never in pain and always still happy, playful and eating like a pig. His body just finally gave out to his age and he actually passed peacefully with his head in my wife's lap as she sang to him, I was holding him and his best friend and playmate sitting against him on his bed. We were even able to get him outside on the porch which was his favorite spot. He was hanging on over the last two days and literally, 10 minutes after my wife actually told him it was ok to leave, he did.
Perfect. Just perfect and how we parted with our guy this past March. Not even close to easy but by far and away the only way to do it.
 
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my apologies for starting this help me thread and not getting back with what was the result.
My vet prescribed Rymadyl 25 mg ( 1/2 tab every 12 hours.)
Took one day for her t joint support supplement o stop limping and I sytoped giving her the medicine after the 3rd day.
Giving her 1 VETIQ hip and joint support supplement friend recommended to me. and LALA isn't limping at all.
Stuff has 600mg of Gloucosamine ,210mg of MSM with210 mg KRILL and 280mg Fish Oil

Thanks to all

My dog is 15 (she's about 60 pounds). I give he some Rymadyl - only as needed. If she is stiff and seems in pain, I'll give he some for a few days.
 
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